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XIII
EZRA'S VISITORS were divided into two groups, those literati,
such as Huntingdon Cairns and other semi-official personages, who
came to visit him out of a sense of duty, and the young men who
realized instinctively, as there were no advertisements to that effect,
that they would find at the madhouse the consideration and instruction
(inspiration, if you will) that they needed.
One literary figure has bemoaned the fact that so many "immoral
rightwing beatniks" were numbered among Pound's regular
visitors. This impression has probably stemmed from the publicity
attendant upon the exploits of John Kasper and a few other reckless
young people who were attracted by the Bohemian legend of
Pound. He rarely turned away a young visitor. He liked expounding
his theories to the young, and the groves of St. Elizabeths became
an academy which may produce America's leader of the future,
although the thought is enough to cause a wave of suicides among
our liberal intellectuals.
Pound had no way of investigating the background or personal
habits of his visitors. On several occasions, I recall that he refused
to believe revelations about the characters of some of his circle. He
seemed to attribute these stories to the jealousy among the intimates,
who maneuvered to get the positions closest to him, and
certainly such jealousy was evident.
One of Pound's most frequent visitors for several years was the
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